KUALA LUMPUR: Wawasan's Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal has warned Putrajaya against placing too great a financial burden on Petronas, saying the national oil company must retain sufficient financial strength to invest in future energy projects and safeguard Malaysia's energy security.
He said higher dividend payments to the government, uncertainty over Petronas' position in Sarawak and the company's role in securing fuel supplies during the Strait of Hormuz crisis had created a demanding set of obligations.
"Petronas has once again become the country's dependable workhorse," he said during the 2027 Budget debate in the Dewan Rakyat.
"Previously, I called it the goose that lays the golden eggs. Not everyone understood that expression. Put simply, Petronas is the company Malaysia depends on."
Wan Fayhsal said the government was relying too heavily on Petronas to support its spending plans.
"At this point, the government is squeezing Petronas to support the budget," he said.
2027 Budget projects a RM32 billion contribution from Petronas, accounting for about 8.4 per cent of the government's projected RM380.8 billion revenue next year.
This is significantly higher than the RM20 billion dividend originally provided for in Budget 2026, although the revised estimate for this year was subsequently raised to RM27 billion.
Wan Fayhsal said the issue was not whether Petronas could make the contribution, but whether it should be expected to do so without sufficient regard for its future investment requirements.
"It is not that it cannot be done. It can. But we must remember that Petronas needs to retain funds for the future," he said.
"This is especially important for oil and gas investments, which are highly capital-intensive."
Petronas' first-half results illustrate both its financial strength and the scale of its responsibilities. It recorded RM152.4 billion in revenue and RM27.2 billion in profit after tax for the six months ended June 30.
However, cash flow from operations slipped marginally to RM47.5 billion, while capital investments more than doubled year-on-year to RM41.4 billion.
These investments included upstream exploration and development, spending to sustain future production, and additional capital injected into the Pengerang Refining and Petrochemical complex.
The group declared RM20 billion in dividends to shareholders in the first half of the year.
Its cash and funds pool stood at RM193.6 billion as at June 30, down from RM204.4 billion at the end of 2025. Its net cash position was RM66.8 billion, the lowest in five years.
Wan Fayhsal said the government must consider these figures in the context of Petronas' wider national responsibilities.
"With Petronas carrying extensive subsidy-related responsibilities, what is its financial health to sustain the national budget?" he said.
He also raised the unresolved dispute over Sarawak's oil and gas regulatory framework.
"Added to this is the impasse over the gas agreement with Sarawak, where we do not yet know the final outcome," he said.
Petronas and the Sarawak government have filed separate petitions in the Federal Court concerning the validity and application of state and federal oil and gas laws. The cases are tentatively scheduled to be heard at the end of January.
The dispute is significant because more than 60 per cent of Malaysia's gas reserves are located off Borneo. Petronas has said it is seeking legal clarity on the regulatory framework governing its operations in Sarawak, while the state is challenging the continued application of several federal petroleum laws.
Wan Fayhsal said the government must also account for the costs and risks Petronas had borne in maintaining fuel supplies during the West Asia crisis.
In March, Petronas said nearly 40 per cent of Malaysia's crude oil requirements transited through the Strait of Hormuz. The company said the crisis had pushed up crude oil prices, shipping costs and insurance premiums, while domestic demand for petrol and diesel continued to exceed local supply.
Petronas said it had mobilised its integrated value chain to secure adequate supplies, supporting close to half of the domestic fuel market at the time.
"The government needs to explain to the people, in light of the challenges we face today, what is the financial health of Petronas in sustaining the national budget," Wan Fayhsal said.
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